June 24, 2010

Update on my Dad

Hello, everyone. Here is an update on my Dad, for those who need encouragement about the lost. He is not a Christian yet, but has done a total 180 in his opinions. I gave my Dad a Bible a little over a year ago. He hates to read, but has suddenly become so interested in knowing more about God, that he has been forcing himself to read the Bible just about every day. Two months ago he approached me and expressed a real frustration about not being able to understand anything he was reading. (We know that the Word says that a natural man cannot understand the things of God, because they are spiritually appraised, but my Dad does not know that, and is still trying to read, and I'm not standing in his way!) He asked me for a "movie" or an audio Bible instead, because he hates to read. But I knew he really wanted an audio or video explaining the Bible. I had no idea where to find such a thing, especially from a reputable source.

Well the LigonierConference was this week, and I won 2 free tickets to the conference on the radio. The topic was "Tough Questions Christians Face." I asked my father if he would like to go, and he said yes! My Dad attended only on Friday. It was a bit "heady" for him but I did catch him smiling here and there as he listened to the messages. He really seems to have latched onto R.C. Sproul's ministry. During a break he wandered around the conference center a bit and took one of the free messages they were giving out to listen to later on.

While at the conference, I stumbled upon the exact item my Dad was asking for. R.C. Sproul has a series called "Dust to Glory: An Overview of the Bible." It is 60 messages on CD. The series costs about $70 but the old packaging was on clearance for just $20. I got it for my Dad for Father's Day. When I gave it to him, he was tickled pink and said, "This is just what I wanted!" He began listening to the first message this morning. When I came home for my lunch break today, he was very excited and telling me how much he likes the series already, and how much he likes R.C. Sproul. He kept saying wonderful things about R.C., such as "This man has a gift! God has given him a real gift to be able to explain these things!" (I have never heard my dad use these terms before. I pray one day he will be raving about Jesus like this, but for now I'm glad he's raving about R.C.)

After my shift was over, I came home from work and we talked for another hour this evening. My Dad wanted to know how the rest of the conference was. He was saying that he wanted to listen to the messages he missed out on. I told him as soon as the messages were available online I'd let him know. He told me, "I'm not saying I disagree that Jesus is the only way. I'm just wondering how they addressed that issue at the conference, because that's a really tough concept for some people."

My Dad still thinks that people are basically good and is wrestling with how God could send these people in remote areas to hell, but he is amazingly accepting of the fact (whereas he was extremely opposed to this idea just 3 years ago). I asked him if he thought he was a good person, and he said, "No, not at all, and I deserve to go to hell." (He answered quite differently 3 years ago, insisting he was good and deserved to go to heaven.) I am encouraged over how he is now accepting the tenets of the Christian faith. He is not a Christian yet, but Christianity is starting to make sense to him and does not seem so absurd anymore. It is amazing to watch this unfold.

I also wanted to mention that my dad is 62 years old. I share this only because we rarely hear about people coming to Christ in their 60's. I've also been told that statistically, if you don't become a Christian by such-and-such an age, then it's pretty much over for you. These types of statistics insult the power of God, and has us over-focused on youth groups and the younger generation. Everyone of every age needs Christ. Do not give up on people who are past a certain age. It is not too late for them! My Dad is 62 and he only began softening to the gospel message this year, and I have been witnessing to him for 17 years.

I hope this encourages you.

Jen*************************************

This has been published with permission from Jen, who is the host of Reformed SHEology. Jen and I have a mutual experience through an evangelism group where we were both participants, at different times in the past.

Reformed SHEology is currently undergoing some site changes, but have no fear, when her blog is back in full swing, you won't be disappointed with what she and a few other ladies have to share.

I'm grateful to Jen for allowing me to publish this very encouraging email here on my blog. Thank you Jen!

2 comments:

Hey, Kurt. I just wanted to drop a line to you and your readers to let you know that my dad is now a Christian. It is hard for me to say that because it's been 17 years of witnessing and I just can't believe what's happened. The other reason is because he is still so new in the faith he says things that make me wonder if I'm mistaken in my "diagnosis." But the evidence is there, and I'm satisfied that he's truly a believer. I pray you and your readers are encouraged.

Remember to Pray for Them

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Preach Christ

I believe that those sermons which are fullest of Christ are the most likely to be blessed to the conversion of the hearers. Let your sermons be full of Christ, from beginning to end crammed full of the Gospel. As for myself, brethren, I cannot preach anything else but Christ and His Cross, for I know nothing else, and long ago, like the Apostle Paul, I determined not to know anything else save Jesus Christ and Him crucified. ~ Charles Haddon Spurgeon